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Walk the talk (Trinity 13, 30 August)

30/8/2015

 
But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. (James 1:22)
For the next few weeks, our New Testament epistle reading us takes into the book of James. Tradition has it that James was Jesus’ brother (Mark 6:30) and the head of the early church (Acts 12:17).

The letter is most probably a circular to all of the churches and is written to encourage the early Christians to put their faith into action. James begins in chapter one by encouraging his readers to be faithful in spite of whatever trials and temptations may come their way and to be thankful for all that God has blessed them with:
Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above. (James 1:17)
James urges us not to keep our faith partitioned off and private from the rest of our life. As Christians, the love of Jesus should be the evident in all we do. We are not to become like the Pharisees and teachers of the law in today’s Gospel reading. Jesus exposes their hypocrisy: “You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to human traditions" (Mark 7:8).

As a church I pray that we might resist falling into the same trap and that our love for Jesus might be clearly demonstrated in the way we live our our faith each day.

Till next time…
Andrew
How you treat people after church

Readings

1st            Song of Solomon 2:8–13
2nd          James 1:17–27
Psalm     15
Gospel    Mark 7:1–8, 14–15, 21–23   

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Put on the full armour of God (Trinity 12, 23 August)

24/8/2015

 
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When the going gets tough, those with not enough faith get going. In our gospel this week we see that, for at least some of the crowd who were following Jesus, things are starting to get a little too serious. The excitement and adventure of journeying with Jesus are one thing. But all this talk about dying and eating flesh and drinking blood are a completely different story. The excitement of all those miracles of healing and free bread are fantastic but all the talk of living lives of sacrifice is not so palatable.

The truth is always the same for those who will be Christ’s followers. This is no easy ride. To take up one’s cross and follow Jesus requires perseverance, stamina and an almighty amount of faith and prayer. The good news is that in the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus gives us all we need to be up for the task.

In Ephesians 6:18, Paul encourages us to “pray in the Spirit at all times” and he reminds us of the great armory that God has given us with to help us live our Christian life. The belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, are all God’s gift to help us stand firm.

When was the last time you dusted yours off?

Till next time,
Andrew

Readings

1st             1 Kings 8:1, 6, 10–11
2nd           Ephesians 6:10–20
Psalm        84
Gospel      John 6:56–69

Praise for God's wonderful work (Trinity 11, 16 August)

17/8/2015

 
At the beginning of our parish meeting last week, it was wonderful to have the opportunity to give thanks and praise God for the many blessings we have to be thankful for in our parish and our community.

Our readings this week remind us of the wisdom of giving thanks to God in all things.

Psalm 111 begins with the psalmist singing the praise of God:
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Praise the Lord!
I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart,
in the company of the upright, in the congregation.
Great are the works of the Lord,
studied by all who delight in them.
(Psalm 111: 1–2)




As children of God, there is great strength and unity to be found when we stand together in praise before the Lord:
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
all those who practice it have a good understanding.
His praise endures forever!
(Psalm 111:10)

In the letter to the Ephesians, Paul gives similar advice:. There is great wisdom, it seems, in being a people of praise:
Be careful then how you live, not as unwise people but as wise, making the most of the time, because the days are evil. So do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but be filled with the Spirit, as you sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts, giving thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.  (Ephesians 5:15–20)

In our Gospel reading, Jesus reminds us once again that it is only when we put our trust in Him that we can ever be fully satisfied:
"... I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” (John 6:51)
The gift of life we have in Christ is a gift for which we should always be thankful. I pray that the Holy Spirit might give each of us the wisdom to truly know the fullness of blessing that comes from living in His love and to be bearers of that gift to those around us.

Till next time,
Andrew

Readings

1st          1 Kings 2:10–12, 3:3–14
2nd         Ephesians 5:11–31
Psalm    111
Gospel   John 6:51–58
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Living the life of love  (Trinity 10, 9 August)

12/8/2015

 
Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty." (John 6:35)
In our gospel this week we are reminded once more that Jesus is the “Bread of Life.” Just as we need bread as a staple part of our diet so too we need to include Jesus as the staple part of our lives.
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. (Ephesians 5:1–2)

Paul encourages us to be imitators of God and to follow Jesus’ example and live a life of love. So powerful was Jesus’ love for us that he gave up his life that we might have life. In  and in return he calls us to love one another in the same way.

So what does it mean for us to be imitators of his love?
  • It means that we need to willing to give of our selves in the same selfless way that Jesus did.
  • It means that we need to make sure in all that we do we are generously and unselfishly giving life to others.
  • It means that just as Christ was, so we should also be, channels of God’s love to the people around us.

Till next time,
Andrew

Readings

1st             2 Samuel 18:5–9, 14, 31–33
2nd           Ephesians 4:17–5:2
Psalm      130
Gospel    John 6:35, 41–51
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'I am the bread of life' (Trinity 9, 2 August)

2/8/2015

 
This week's discussion is courtesy of Richard Donovan's commentary on John 6 at Lectionary.org.


"I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will not be hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty" (John 6:35).



The crowd failed to understand when Jesus spoke of "the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the world" (John 6:33), so he makes his meaning clear: "I am the bread of life" (John 6:35).

This is the first of a series of "I AM" (Greek: ego eimi) sayings in this Gospel that remind us of the burning bush story. When Moses asked God his name, God replied: "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'I AM has sent me to you' " (Exodus 3:14).
 
"I am," of course, can be simple self-identification, but in John's Gospel it clearly means more.

 The "I AM" sayings in John's Gospel show us the many facets of Jesus' life:

"Ego eimi he" (4:26)
"Ego eimi the bread of life" (6.35)
"Ego eimi the living bread" (6:51)
"Ego eimi the light of the world" (8:12; 9:5)
"Before Abraham came into existence, ego eimi" (8:58)
"Ego eimi the sheep's door" (10:7)
"Ego eimi the door" (10:9)
"Ego eimi the good shepherd" (10:11)
"Ego eimi the resurrection and the life" (11:25)
"Ego eimi the way, the truth, and the life" (14:6)
"Ego eimi the true vine" (15:1)
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"He who comes to me will not be hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty" (John 6:35) 
In their forty-year trek through the wilderness, God fed the Israelites manna, teaching them to rely on God for their sustenance.  The deeper lesson was "that man does not live by bread only, but man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of Yahweh" (Deuteronomy 8:3).  Now Jesus makes a similar claim for himself.  He will provide for the deepest needs of those who believe in him.

Till next time,
Andrew

Readings

1st              2 Samuel 11:26–12:13a
2nd            Ephesians 4:1–16
Psalm       51:1–12
Gospel     John 6:24–35

Download this week's pewsheet (pdf)
Download this week's sermon (mp3, 5MB)
    Picture

    Rev. Andrew Smith

    Vicar of Light in the Hills
    Anglican Parish of Mt.
     Dandenong

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  • Home
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